Is it okay to go to bed hungry?

2

Replies

  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    I'm no professional, but here's my two cents.

    1. Eating immediately before bed doesn't give your body the chance to use the energy you just consumed, so it goes straight to energy storage... fat.

    False.

    Your post is useless without elaboration.

    False. Because science.
  • oOxXxOo
    oOxXxOo Posts: 75 Member
    Personally I would eat. If you have calories left, eat them. If you dont have calories left eat something light and balance the cals over a few days so your weekly average balances out. All works out in the wash.
  • LinkSatonaka
    LinkSatonaka Posts: 3
    You seem to have just chosen one side of an unresolved subject as gospel truth- searching yields plenty of results for both arguments.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    You seem to have just chosen one side of an unresolved subject as gospel truth- searching yields plenty of results for both arguments.

    This is well resolved. Keep studying. It will eventually click.
  • ice1200s
    ice1200s Posts: 237 Member
    I've read some articles that say not eating after a certain time is basically an urban legend. Just save some of your calorie allotment for a bedtime snack. That's the key.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,708 Member
    Starving yourself is a terrible idea.


    Yes, but going to bed with a slight hunger or craving every once in a while is not " starving yourself " except maybe here in MFP.
    The Medical Dictionary, as well as the WHO and UNICEF define starvation as " the result of a severe or total lack of nutrients needed for the maintenance of life ". I don't think that not having a snack one night qualifies as " severe and total lack of nutrients ".
  • Cranquistador
    Cranquistador Posts: 39,744 Member
    You seem to have just chosen one side of an unresolved subject as gospel truth- searching yields plenty of results for both arguments.

    This is well resolved. Keep studying. It will eventually click.

    yep.
  • navyrigger46
    navyrigger46 Posts: 1,301 Member
    It's fine, 11:37 here and I'm having some Del Taco. My last meal of the day typically comes between 11:00 and midnight. Your body doesn't know what time it is, it just knows it's hungry, and it'll continue to burn calories as you sleep.

    Rigger
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,708 Member
    [/quote]

    I live in the first world. I was born into luxuries compared to a large percentage of the rest of the world. Luxuries which I take for granted. Having plenty of food in my house and eating it when I'm hungry is one of them. Going to bed hungry makes me sad. Being sad means not being at my best. I want to be at my best.
    [/quote]

    As i said in a previous post, people need to do what they like. I just don't like it when misinformation is spread.
    Maybe you are not aware, but even in your first world country ( whichever it might be ) there are probably millions of people who go to bed hungry each night.....usually it has to do with poverty .
    But that was not my point. My point was that I have never heard/read anything about it being dangerous to one's health to go to bed occasionally hungry, except of course here on MFP.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member

    I live in the first world. I was born into luxuries compared to a large percentage of the rest of the world. Luxuries which I take for granted. Having plenty of food in my house and eating it when I'm hungry is one of them. Going to bed hungry makes me sad. Being sad means not being at my best. I want to be at my best.

    As i said in a previous post, people need to do what they like. I just don't like it when misinformation is spread.
    Maybe you are not aware, but even in your first world country ( whichever it might be ) there are probably millions of people who go to bed hungry each night.....usually it has to do with poverty .
    But that was not my point. My point was that I have never heard/read anything about it being dangerous to one's health to go to bed occasionally hungry, except of course here on MFP.

    And I never claimed it was dangerous. I'm just not a fan of being unkind to oneself is all.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,708 Member
    [/quote]

    And I never claimed it was dangerous. I'm just not a fan of being unkind to oneself is all.
    [/quote]

    I know you did not say that, but someone else did and I was responding to that person. You voiced your opinion to me and out of courtesy I responded........
    I know exactly what you mean with " not being unkind to oneself ". For a while I was so " kind " to myself that I ended up being 80 pounds overweight.....:o).
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    And I never claimed it was dangerous. I'm just not a fan of being unkind to oneself is all.

    I know you did not say that, but someone else did and I was responding to that person. You voiced your opinion to me and out of courtesy I responded........

    Can we talk about the proper nesting and balancing of the [q:wink:" rel="nofollow">uote] tag next? :wink:
  • snazzyjazzy21
    snazzyjazzy21 Posts: 1,298 Member
    I try not to, simply because it makes it harder for me to get to sleep.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,708 Member
    And I never claimed it was dangerous. I'm just not a fan of being unkind to oneself is all.

    I know you did not say that, but someone else did and I was responding to that person. You voiced your opinion to me and out of courtesy I responded........

    Can we talk about the proper nesting and balancing of the [q[url]uote] tag next? :wink:
    [/url]


    We could if it is really important to you :wink:, but personally I would prefer to go to bed, since it is 1 am here.
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
    In my experience even if you've eaten a couple hundred calories over maintenance, your body will signal hunger after a few hours of not eating. I usually don't care if I'm a little hungry when I go to sleep because the feeling of being tired quickly eliminates the hunger sensation. I sometimes "top up" a day with a few cherries, a slice of cheese or a quarter cup of greek yogurt if I need to take the edge off just before bed but don't have many calories to spare. Those few extra bites seem to help.

    There's no reason to eat more before bed unless you are starving, under calories and / or uncomfortable. Going to bed with too much of a deficit is very unpleasant and will interrupt my sleep. Going to bed with a little bit of stomach rumbling and no other symptoms is probably a good thing if you are trying to lose mass. If I ate until I was fully comfortable all the time I wouldn't be in a deficit anymore.
  • Teele86
    Teele86 Posts: 23 Member
    I remember a health professional saying that its more the amount of calories/food over a 24hr period with exercise not so much when. Although saying that eating something high in sugar before bed isnt going to do you any good. Eating at 6 and then bed at 11:40 well that means you haven't eaten for 5hrs no wonder your hungry! factor in an after dinner snack and enjoy!
  • lovinmyselfagain
    lovinmyselfagain Posts: 307 Member
    I've eaten before bed through most of my weight loss journey(and I lost 78lbs in a year), sometimes because I worked out at night and always have a post workout snack. And sometimes because I simply can't sleep on an empty stomach. Eating right before bed has not made me store fat as some people seem to think will happen. BUT, it also has to do with my activity level throughout my WHOLE day. So it's not about when you eat, but rather how much of it are you burning through your daily activities and exercise. I'm currently starving and it's 2am. I worked in my yard for 4 hours before dinner and burned crazy amounts of calories. Dinner calories didn't come close to what I burned, hence being really hungry at bedtime. I'm going to make me a snack of plain Greek yogurt(high in protein), chia or flax seeds(both high in fiber), and might throw some blueberries in there too. A snack high in protein and/or fiber will help you feel full longer.

    Is it okay to go to bed hungry? It's not "not okay." So if you can do it, more power to you. But don't torture yourself unnecessarily. Eat a sensible snack before bed and don't worry about it. If you didn't have the calories "to give" that day, then just work 'em off the next day.
  • angelicdevil28
    angelicdevil28 Posts: 1
    If you're hungry and you have calories left in your allowance then there's no reason not to have a snack as long as it doesn't push you over your calorie allowance. As long as calories in don't get greater than calories burnt and you stay under or on your allotted allowance it shouldn't technically matter because a calorie is a calorie as far as weight gain goes so you could technically eat 1,000 calories of chocolate a day and still lose weight if that's all you ate! You probably wouldn't feel great and have terrible nutrition levels but you'd still lose, so if weight gain is your only concern then go for it providing it doesn't push you over. If you're talking nutrition though, that's a different kettle of fish. Literally lol :laugh:
  • wordpainter09
    wordpainter09 Posts: 472 Member
    I try not to, simply because it makes it harder for me to get to sleep.

    This ^^, it's up to you really. It's fine if you can handle the hunger and have eaten sufficient cals for the day.
    i can handle it some days, other days it disrupts my sleep and I need a snack.
  • tnsumner
    tnsumner Posts: 283 Member
    Your body might actually be thirsty, especially if you ate a high fat or high sodium meal.

    Try drinking 4-6 oz of water instead of eating.
  • andiebaco
    andiebaco Posts: 211 Member
    Depends.. If I'm really hungry and I know that my dinner was light and that I have calories left, I eat something. If I know that I ate enough and I'm just craving something no.

    I don't like going to bed with my stomach full.. I have nightmares and I don't sleep well. It's a personal preference and seriously it's not because of that "eating before bed makes you fat" sillyness.

    The same for breakfast... Sometimes I eat within the hour of waking up, sometimes I wait until lunch. The body doesn't have a clock that tells it when to eat, we created that need. I eat when I'm really hungry. What we need to learn is to understand the signs of real hunger and not get confused with the cravings or psycological hunger.
  • andypandy1109
    andypandy1109 Posts: 42 Member
    your body goes into an automatic detox at 11pm ...this is the bodies natural function.

    any food undigested at this time must be processed fast to get it out of the way...so the fastest way it can deal with it is to lay it down as fat.

    some say you should never eat after 6pm...but most lifestles people are still commuting home from work...i would say 8pm this does not quite give the 4 hours between meals for you to empty.

    i am a late night snacker and i put my weight gain to this as my meals are usually good usually healthy but this is where i fall down...i would bet all of us who are overweight eat before bed...

    so yes going to bed hungry wont harm you...may not be comfortable but wont harm you...make suyre your teas are more substantial to take you through and definatly have the breakfast...break the fast ......and that is why it is the most important meal of the day...:flowerforyou:
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
    your body goes into an automatic detox at 11pm ...this is the bodies natural function.

    any food undigested at this time must be processed fast to get it out of the way...so the fastest way it can deal with it is to lay it down as fat.

    some say you should never eat after 6pm...but most lifestles people are still commuting home from work...i would say 8pm this does not quite give the 4 hours between meals for you to empty.

    i am a late night snacker and i put my weight gain to this as my meals are usually good usually healthy but this is where i fall down...i would bet all of us who are overweight eat before bed...

    so yes going to bed hungry wont harm you...may not be comfortable but wont harm you...make suyre your teas are more substantial to take you through and definatly have the breakfast...break the fast ......and that is why it is the most important meal of the day...:flowerforyou:
    Lol - is this a serious post?
  • andiebaco
    andiebaco Posts: 211 Member
    your body goes into an automatic detox at 11pm ...this is the bodies natural function.

    any food undigested at this time must be processed fast to get it out of the way...so the fastest way it can deal with it is to lay it down as fat.

    some say you should never eat after 6pm...but most lifestles people are still commuting home from work...i would say 8pm this does not quite give the 4 hours between meals for you to empty.

    i am a late night snacker and i put my weight gain to this as my meals are usually good usually healthy but this is where i fall down...i would bet all of us who are overweight eat before bed...

    so yes going to bed hungry wont harm you...may not be comfortable but wont harm you...make suyre your teas are more substantial to take you through and definatly have the breakfast...break the fast ......and that is why it is the most important meal of the day...:flowerforyou:


    I never knew my body knew how to read a clock.. Such an amazing thing..! So, if I go to the other side of the world, and the time changes... does that mean that my body will automatically detox at 11pm home time or 11pm host time?

    Oh the mysterys of life.

    If you're trying to explain the IF then, fail for you. IF has NOTHING to do with the timing but actually has something to do with the time between the first and the last meal.. You can IF during the day and eat all your calories within four hours time just before going to bed and you won't gain weight. There are some MFP users who fast the whole day and have their meals within a short window at night and they're losing/maintaining/gaining muscle quite well..
  • xtrasmall
    xtrasmall Posts: 66
    i do this basically daily man like dont usually eat anything past 630pm like barely ever anymore n im maintaining like 100pounds haha.. but ya try drinking a cup of cold water instead of eating if ur so hungry that u cant sleep i guess
  • phillinnz
    phillinnz Posts: 82 Member
    Well put.
    going to bed hungry is a no-no. maybe once or twice a year is ok, but no more than that.

    Just curious, not looking for drama/trouble......why ? Are you aware that about 40% of the world's population on any given night go to bed hungry and I have never seen a study that mentions it to be bad. I think it is bad if it is a way of life, but the occasional little bit hunger at night is not bad at all.
    Often if people are consistently hungry at night, even after a full dinner it is because they eat too many processed and refined calories. A little more quality protein or complex carbs, or better both at dinner will usually take care of the before bed munchies.
  • littlebee26
    littlebee26 Posts: 116
    I couldn't agree more. Too many people on here take the attitude that they must lose weight as easily as possible, never finding it difficult or challenging in case it is difficult to keep this up long term. B*&&S!!! Get on with it. Its not meant to be easy. Introduce comfort when you are maintaining. Maintainence must be a long term plan. Weight loss is about commitment to a tough program. Expect losing weight to be difficult! It is difficult.
  • Girlrose
    Girlrose Posts: 127 Member
    Wow, thank you so much to everyone for your thoughtful responses! You all have such a valuable wealth of knowledge. I am new to MFP and I am completely blown away by how helpful and supportive the community is. Thank you so much!

    If anyone is curious, I ended up eating a small handful of almonds last night and it diminished my hunger. I still had a few hundred calories left for the day, so I hope/don't expect to gain. :-)
  • navyrigger46
    navyrigger46 Posts: 1,301 Member
    your body goes into an automatic detox at 11pm ...this is the bodies natural function.

    any food undigested at this time must be processed fast to get it out of the way...so the fastest way it can deal with it is to lay it down as fat.

    some say you should never eat after 6pm...but most lifestles people are still commuting home from work...i would say 8pm this does not quite give the 4 hours between meals for you to empty.

    i am a late night snacker and i put my weight gain to this as my meals are usually good usually healthy but this is where i fall down...i would bet all of us who are overweight eat before bed...

    so yes going to bed hungry wont harm you...may not be comfortable but wont harm you...make suyre your teas are more substantial to take you through and definatly have the breakfast...break the fast ......and that is why it is the most important meal of the day...:flowerforyou:

    Is that 11 PM Eastern standard time? what about me, I'm in the mountain west? How does the body figure out daylight savings time? What if you're in the southern hemisphere and the toilets run backwards? Does that make it 11AM? I'm so confused, when do I have to stop eating? Oh crap, I didn't have breakfast this morning, my body is going to freak out and convert my brain into fat by mistake. HEEEEEEEEELP!

    It makes absolutely no difference what time of day you eat, or how close to bed time, and breakfast is NOT the most important meal of the day, it's just another meal, the body has no clue what time it is, and your metabolism does NOT have a union mandated quitting time. Your body just does it's thing 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, no matter which direction the toilets run.

    Rigger
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    Whatever you do don't make an apple that snack....

    Tuesday night about 9pm I was hungry and I mean belly empty hungry...Had some calories left so I ate an apple went to bed about 30mins later...woke up so hungry I could have knawed my husbands arm off and he is not coyote ugly.:laugh:

    But seriously if you are hungry eat....doesn't matter the time or what you are doing afterwards hunger isyour bodys way of saying

    "FEED ME"

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